Mae Young Early career (1939-1949) When did she start wrestling ? While still in high school, Was her family supportive of this? She left home two years later to wrestle professionally. Did she win any belts in her early years of her career? opened up Canada for female wrestling. Are there any other interesting aspects about this article? Lewis whom told her "I don't like girl wrestlers, women should be in the kitchen, but after seeing you, you was born to be a wrestler." Did she receive a lot of criticism for wrestling in her early career? wrestlers, women should be in the kitchen, but after seeing you, you was born to be a wrestler."
Did she pair with any other female wrestlers during this time?
In addition to Lewis, did Mae Young pair with any other female wrestlers during her career?
While still in high school, Young went to a professional wrestling show and challenged then-champion Mildred Burke when she visited Tulsa to wrestle Gladys Gillem. Because the promoters told her she could not wrestle the champion, she wrestled Gillem in a shoot fight, beating her within seconds. After the fight, promoter Billy Wolfe wanted Young to become a professional wrestler. She left home two years later to wrestle professionally. Young later travelled to Charlotte, North Carolina where she met and trained with The Fabulous Moolah and also met Ed "Strangler" Lewis whom told her "I don't like girl wrestlers, women should be in the kitchen, but after seeing you, you was born to be a wrestler."  There have been conflicting reports as to the year in which Young began her career. Young claimed her first match was August 20, 1939, while WWE said she "started her professional career" this year. However, Young also once said her first match was March 22, 1940. According to Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer, historians have been unable to find any records that she began in 1939 and that her first match was most likely in 1941. Meltzer wrote, "In reality, Young is believed to have competed in seven decades, matching the record held by Lou Thesz. [...] You really couldn't call [her] 2010 match anything resembling a pro wrestling match, even giving as much leeway as possible. While she always claimed to have started in 1939, at 16, historians researching have been unable to find any records of her wrestling prior to 1941, when she turned 18 and went on tour with Billy Wolfe's troupe."  In 1941, Young, along with Mildred Burke, opened up Canada for female wrestling. In Canada, they worked for Stu Hart. She was wrestling in Memphis, Tennessee on December 7, 1941, the day that Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese, which led to the United States entering World War II. During the war, Young helped women take advantage of the fact that the men were fighting overseas by expanding their role in the sport. CANNOTANSWER
along with Mildred Burke,
Johnnie Mae Young (March 12, 1923 – January 14, 2014) was an American professional wrestler. She wrestled throughout the United States and Canada and won multiple titles in the National Wrestling Alliance. Young is considered one of the pioneers in women's wrestling as she helped to increase the popularity of the sport throughout the 1940s and during World War II. In 1954, she and Mildred Burke were among the first female competitors to tour post-war Japan.

Beginning in 1999, Young had a high-profile "second career" in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). Young was part of a recurring comedic duo with best friend The Fabulous Moolah in appearances on WWE televised events. Young is also remembered for taking bumps well past the age of 80 on televised programming. In 2004, she was inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum as part of their "Lady Wrestler" category. On March 29, 2008, Young was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

In 2017, the Mae Young Classic tournament was introduced by WWE in her memory.

Early life 
Johnnie Mae Young was born in Sand Springs, Oklahoma on March 12, 1923. She was the youngest of eight children (one died at birth). Her mother Lilly Mae Young was a single mother (her partner left to find work and never returned) living during the Great Depression. Young's oldest sister Inie was severely disabled by whooping cough at a very young age. Young was an amateur wrestler on her high school's boys' wrestling team at the age of fifteen. Her brothers Fred, Eugen, Lawarence, and Everett taught her to wrestle and helped her join the team. Young also played softball with Tulsa's national championship team.

Professional wrestling career

Beginnings (1939–1950) 

While still in high school, Young went to a professional wrestling show and challenged then-champion Mildred Burke when she visited Tulsa to wrestle Gladys Gillem. Because the promoters told her she could not wrestle the champion, she wrestled Gillem in a shoot fight, beating her within seconds. After the fight, promoter Billy Wolfe wanted Young to become a professional wrestler. She left home two years later to wrestle professionally. Young later traveled to Charlotte, North Carolina where she met and trained with The Fabulous Moolah and also met Ed "Strangler" Lewis who told her "I don't like girl wrestlers, women should be in the kitchen, but after seeing you, you was born to be a wrestler."

There have been conflicting reports as to the year in which Young began her career. Young claimed her first match was August 20, 1939, while WWE said she "started her professional career" this year. However, Young also once said her first match was March 22, 1940. According to Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer, historians have been unable to find any records that she began in 1939 and that her first match was most likely in 1941. Meltzer wrote, "In reality, Young is believed to have competed in seven decades, matching the record held by Lou Thesz. ... You really couldn't call [her] 2010 match anything resembling a pro wrestling match, even giving as much leeway as possible. While she always claimed to have started in 1939, at 16, historians researching have been unable to find any records of her wrestling prior to 1941, when she turned 18 and went on tour with Billy Wolfe's troupe."

In 1941, Young, along with Mildred Burke, opened up Canada for female wrestling. In Canada, they worked for Stu Hart. She was wrestling in Memphis, Tennessee on December 7, 1941, the day that Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese, which led to the United States entering World War II. During the war, Young helped women take advantage of the fact that the men were fighting overseas by expanding their role in the sport.

Various wrestling promotions (1950–1970s) 

She fought under the nicknames of "The Queen" and "The Great Mae Young", but she used her real name for most of her matches. During the 1950s, she wrestled for Mildred Burke's World Women's Wrestling Association (WWWA). In 1954, Young and Burke were some of the first females to tour Japan after the war. In 1951, she became the National Wrestling Alliance's (NWA) first Florida Women's Champion. Five years later in September 1956, she participated in the battle royal to determine the new NWA World Women's Champion after June Byers was stripped of the title, but the championship was won by Young's friend The Fabulous Moolah. In 1968, she became the NWA's first United States Women's Champion.  She wrestled for WWWF in two matches in 1969 and 1972. At this point it is unknown when Mae left the wrestling business and retired.

As an instructor, her students included Ric "The Equalizer" Drasin and The Fabulous Moolah.

Ladies International Wrestling Association (LIWA) (1993-1998) 
In 1993, Young would come out of retirement and started wrestling again for the first  time in over 20 years. She worked for Fabulous Moolah's Ladies International Wrestling Association based in Las Vegas. On June 21, 1996 she teamed with Fabulous Moolah at LIWA Golden Girls Extravaganza event in Las Vegas where they wrestled Liz Chase and Lori Lynn to a no contest. She continued working with LIWA and even teaming with Moolah until 1998. She left the promotion and went to the WWF in 1999.

World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment/WWE

Early appearance and arrival (1994, 1999-2001) 
Before her official recognition by WWE fans, she made a cameo appearance being shown by the camera along with The Fabulous Moolah, Freddie Blassie, Lou Albano, and Nikolai Volkoff in the crowd of the WrestleMania X event on March 20, 1994.

Young made her official debut in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) on the September 9, 1999 episode of SmackDown!, where she was introduced with The Fabulous Moolah and later was attacked by Jeff Jarrett being put into the figure-four leglock. After this appearance, both Mae and Moolah began appearing regularly on WWF televised shows. Mae made her WWF in-ring debut on the September 27 episode of Raw is War; along with Moolah, she competed in a handicapped evening gown match  against WWF Women's Champion Ivory, who stripped Mae from her gown before Moolah picked up the victory. At No Mercy on October 17, Mae managed Moolah, who defeated Ivory for the championship - her last wrestling title before her death in 2007. At Survivor Series on November 14, she and Moolah competed in an eight-woman tag team match along with Debra and Tori against Ivory, Jacqueline, Terri Runnels, and Luna Vachon, with their team coming out victorious.

At the Royal Rumble event on January 23, 2000, Mae Young won the Miss Royal Rumble 2000 swimsuit contest and afterwards flashed her breasts. However, she was actually wearing a prosthesis and did not actually expose herself. At the end of 1999 and through 2000, Mae developed a storyline along with "Sexual Chocolate" Mark Henry where she started dating him, which included a kayfabe pregnancy and attacks by The Dudley Boyz, specifically Bubba Ray Dudley who performed powerbombs on Young through tables twice in consecutive episodes of Raw – the first being in the ring and the second, in which Young was originally bound to a wheelchair, being off the entryway stage as what has been described as the most notorious powerbomb in WWE history. Mae was 77 years of age at the time, but expressed enthusiasm for the stunt. Her child was eventually delivered and found to be nothing more than a bloody rubber hand. On April 2, Mae accompanied The Kat at WrestleMania 2000 to her match against Terri Runnels; Kat lost the match as Mae was distracted by kissing the guest referee, Val Venis, before attacking Terri and her manager, Moolah.

On December 24, 2001, Young and Moolah appeared backstage on the Christmas Eve edition of Raw, which marked their last appearance before returning in the summer of 2002.

Return and sporadic appearances (2002–2007) 

On the July 29, 2002 episode of Raw, Mae Young returned along with Moolah, to promote her new book: "The Fabulous Moolah: First Goddess of the Squared Circle" before being attacked by 3-Minute Warning on orders of general manager Eric Bischoff. On the September 15, 2003 episode of Raw, she accompanied Moolah at her last wrestling singles match, in which she defeated Victoria before being attacked by Randy Orton and an infuriated Victoria. On June 15 at Bad Blood, Mae appeared during a segment along with Stone Cold Steve Austin and Eric Bischoff where she stripped herself in the ring and performed a bronco buster on Bischoff before being stunned by Austin.

In 2004, Mae Young was inducted into the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum as part of their Lady wrestler category class of that year. On the September 23 episode of SmackDown!, Young teamed with Moolah and defeated Dawn Marie and Torrie Wilson.

On March 23, 2005, Moolah and Mae Young appeared on the Late Night with Conan O'Brien show to promote their 2005 documentary in which they starred in an about their 1950s heyday along with several other lady wrestlers of their era. On January 8, 2006 at New Year's Revolution, Young re−appeared along with Moolah during a bra & panties gauntlet match where she stripped herself before being attacked by Victoria as she left the ring, which led to both women retaliate and rip off Victoria's shirt. At WrestleMania 22 on April 2, Young appeared along with Moolah during a backstage segment with Snitsky.

At WrestleMania 23 on April 1, 2007, Mae Young appeared during a backstage segment along with several other WWE superstars and hall of famers. On the August 24 episode of SmackDown, Mae Young made a special appearance winning a Divas bikini contest. Mae's last appearance with Moolah before her death came at SummerSlam in August 2007, both appeared during a backstage segment along with Vince McMahon and Raw's general manager, William Regal, two months prior to her friend's death.

WWE Hall of Fame, retirement and final appearances (2008–2013) 
On March 29, 2008, Young was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame as part of the 2008 class. At the ceremony, she was inducted by fellow wrestler and friend, Pat Patterson. The next night at WrestleMania XXIV, she appeared when she was introduced as part of the 2008 Hall of Fame class. On the 800th episode of Raw on November 3, Mae Young competed in a 16-Diva tag match, where she was pinned by Beth Phoenix.

At WrestleMania XXV on April 5, 2009, Mae Young appeared as the special guest time keeper for the 25-Diva battle royal, which was won by Santina Marella.

On the November 15, 2010, "Old School" edition of Raw, Mae Young won a Falls Count Anywhere handicap match against LayCool, thus becoming the first person ever to wrestle over the age of 80, the first person to wrestle in nine different decades and her final stipulated wrestling match.

At WrestleMania XXVII on April 3, 2011, Mae appeared backstage during a segment along with The Rock and Eve Torres. During the May 2 episode of Raw, Vickie Guerrero and Dolph Ziggler mockingly presented Mae was a "birthday gift" to The Rock, who responded by kissing Young.

Mae Young appeared on SmackDown: Blast from the Past (April 10, 2012), kissing The Great Khali. and Raw 1000 (July 23, 2012), during which she was escorted by a man dressed in a giant hand costume, claiming to be her son. On September 24 episode of Raw, Mae appeared in one of Kane and Daniel Bryan's "Anger Management" skits. On the December 31 episode of Raw, Mae Young was warming up for her match with then-Divas Champion Eve Torres and began experiencing stomach cramps as it was later determined that she was once again pregnant and gave birth to "Baby New Year", played by Hornswoggle.

In her last on-screen appearance on the March 4, 2013 episode of Old School Raw, Mae Young's 90th birthday celebration was interrupted by CM Punk. Backstage, WWE Chairman Vince McMahon and WWE executive Triple H presented her with a personally monogrammed Divas Championship belt.

Professional wrestling persona 
Little is known about Young's character before WWE, but she is remembered in WWE for her comedic performances. Among her finishing and signature moves included the elbow drop and the bronco buster, in which she used to performed the famous D-Generation X crotch chop taunt. Young is also remembered for taking bumps, one of her most famous spots was being powerbombed through a table off the wrestling arena stage by Bubba Ray Dudley at the age of 77. Another famous bump of hers was when she was attacked along with The Fabulous Moolah by 3-Minute Warning, where she was scoop slammed and diving splashed by Rosey and Jamal at the age of 79.

Other media

Video games 
Young appeared in one WWE video game, being this at the WWF No Mercy as an unlockable character, and was also featured on the mobile game for iOS and Android, WWE SuperCard.

Toys 
In 2007, Mae Young was appeared on Jakks Pacific WWE Classic Superstars Series 18. On September 12, 2017, WWE unveiled an exclusive fashion doll done by toy brand Mattel of Mae Young.

In November 2020, a Mae Young action figure was included in the Mattel WWE Elite 81 series as a rare exclusive collector's one.

Personal life 
As a sign of friendship for meeting her longtime friend The Fabulous Moolah, she called her "Lilian" while Moolah referred to her by Young. In 1991, Young quit the wrestling business and moved to California to become a Christian evangelist and take care of her mother, who was sick. She later renounced her evangelist lifestyle. In 1991, she moved in with The Fabulous Moolah and midget wrestler Katie Glass at a house in Columbia, South Carolina, an arrangement which lasted until Moolah's death in November 2007.

Death 

On December 31, 2013, it was reported that Young had been hospitalized. The Charleston Post & Courier erroneously reported that she had died on January 9, 2014. Young's death was announced by the WWE on the morning of January 14 after having died at her home in Columbia, South Carolina. Young was entombed at Greenlawn Memorial Park in Columbia, South Carolina, the same cemetery where her longtime friend The Fabulous Moolah also rests.

Legacy

Mae Young Classic 

On April 1, 2017, WWE announced that a women's tournament would be taking place in the summer of 2017 at a press conference during the WrestleMania 33 weekend and that there were going to be a total of 32 wrestlers competing.

The tournament was named after Young as an honor to her and it was exclusively for women from both NXT and the independent circuit, it took place on July 13 and 14, 2017, which aired on the WWE Network on August 28 (round 1) and September 4 (round 2, quarterfinals, and semifinals), and the final match aired live on September 12, also on the WWE Network. The finalists of the inaugural tournament were Shayna Baszler and Kairi Sane, with the winner being Sane on September 12.

In 2018, the tournament turned annual as it was announced a second event for the Mae Young Classic. The winner of the 2018 tournament was Toni Storm on October 28, and she was crowned at the first ever all women's pay–per–view WWE Evolution.

Posthumous honors 
On January 14, 2014, the exact day of Mae's death, WWE pay tribute to her with a posthumous video which included highlights of her career, and another one six days later on January 20. On January 16, Total Nonstop Action Wrestling dedicated their live Genesis episode of Impact Wrestling to the memory of Young. On January 17, SmackDown was also dedicated to her memory. Two weeks later, Shine 16 dedicated to her a ten-bell salute.

On March 20, 2017, WWE honored Young during their Women's History Month, a video was released where she was credited as the women pioneer of professional wrestling and was praised for her contributions to the wrestling business by Stephanie McMahon, the late Fabulous Moolah, Ivory, Beth Phoenix and Pat Patterson. On July 30, multiple superstars from the Mae Young Classic recognized and honored Mae's legacy and life, among them Lita, Jim Ross, Lacey Evans, Mercedes Martinez, Bianca Belair, Marti Belle and Vanessa Borne.

Filmography

Film

Television

Championships and accomplishments 

 Championship Wrestling from Florida
 NWA Florida Women's Championship (1 time)
 National Wrestling Alliance
 NWA United States Women's Championship (1 time)
 NWA World Women's Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Ella Waldek
 Pro Wrestling Illustrated
 Ranked No. 241 of the top 500 wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2006
 Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame
 Class of 2004
 World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE
 Miss Royal Rumble (1 time)
 Slammy Award (1 time)
 Knucklehead Moment of the Year (2010) 
 WWE Hall of Fame (Class of 2008)
 Other titles
 California Women's Championship (2 times)

See also 
 List of oldest surviving professional wrestlers

Notes

References

External links 

 
 
 
 

1923 births
2014 deaths
American female professional wrestlers
Professional wrestlers from South Carolina
Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum
Professional wrestling trainers
Sportspeople from Tulsa, Oklahoma
WWE Hall of Fame inductees
Stampede Wrestling alumni
Professional wrestlers from Oklahoma
21st-century American women
20th century professional wrestlers
Maria McQueen Dunn (born March 6, 1986) is a freestyle wrestler from Guam. She participated in Women's freestyle 63 kg at 2008 Summer Olympics losing to Elina Vaseva. She also competed in the same division at the 2012 Summer Olympics, and lost to competitor Lubov Volosova. Maria Dunn has won ten Oceania Championships in women's freestyle wrestling.

Biography

Early life and education 
Maria Dunn was born March 6, 1986, in Tamuning, Guam. Dunn wrestled on her high school team.  Dunn's mother was worried, saying "I tried to stop her because I'm afraid for her". Her mother tried to get her into modeling, enrolling her into classes, but Dunn chose wrestling instead. Dunn's mother relented and allowed her to join the wrestling team.

Dunn was the first female college wrestler to receive an athletic scholarship at Missouri Valley College. She attended the university from 2004 to 2008. Dunn graduated with a bachelor of arts degree at the University of Guam in 2011.

Olympic career 
Dunn was the first-ever Guamanian female wrestler to participate in the Olympic Games, via invitational slot or 'wild card'. She was the flagbearer for the Opening Ceremonies of the Games. Dunn finished in last place during the 2008 Summer Olympics in the women's freestyle 63 kg.

Dunn qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics with a tripartite allocation. If the rules were the same as in 2008, she would have qualified after she won the 2012 Oceania Wrestling Championships. Dunn was one of three female wrestlers to receive a tripartite allocation, and the only female wrestler from Oceania to receive one. She trained for the 2012 Summer Olympics with Roy Wood in the city of Wigan, and stayed with his family while practicing freestyle wrestling. While training in England, Maria met her future husband, English wrestler Nathan Tully.  She was the flagbearer for Guam during the Opening Ceremonies, during which time she was pregnant with her first child. Dunn was pinned by Russian Lubov Volosova early in the match. Dunn believed only one of her shoulders were down, which would mean she was not pinned, and believed the official called the pin because it was near the end of the period.

International career
Dunn won silver at the 2002 Oceania Championships, and won gold at the 2007, 2008, and 2010 Oceania Championships.  Dunn was named the outstanding female wrestler of the 2010 Oceania Championships. She did not lose a single match between the 2002 and 2011 Oceania Championships, and decided to move up a weight class to have more competition. She lost to New Zealand's Tayla Ford in the championship match of the 2011 Oceania Championships and took home a silver medal. She also won the 2012 Oceania Wrestling Championships, moving back to the 63 kg weight class.

Personal life 

Maria married English wrestler Nathan Tully and the pair set up home together on Maria's home island of Guam. They co founded Snakepit Wrestling Academy Guam to teach Wrestling to children and young people. Their daughter, Marleya Louise, was born in 2012 and their son, Tyson Avoca, was born in 2015. Maria is a teacher and artist.
She currently resides in Yigo, Guam, with her 2 children and her mother. Her husband, Nathan, died in July 2020 aged 32 after a battle with oral cancer.

References

External links
 

Living people
1986 births
Olympic wrestlers of Guam
Wrestlers at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Wrestlers at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Guamanian women
Guamanian female sport wrestlers
People from Tamuning, Guam
21st-century American women Rhonda Ann Singh (February 21, 1961 – July 27, 2001) was a Canadian professional wrestler. After training with Mildred Burke, she wrestled in Japan under the name Monster Ripper. In 1987, she returned to Canada and began working with Stampede Wrestling, where she was their first Stampede Women's Champion. In 1995, she worked in the World Wrestling Federation as the comedic character Bertha Faye, winning the WWF Women's Championship. She also wrestled in World Championship Wrestling to help generate interest in their women's division.

Professional wrestling career

Training
While growing up in Calgary, Sing attended numerous Stampede Wrestling events with her mother. She knew she wanted to be a wrestler from a young age and frequently beat up the neighborhood children, along with those in her kindergarten class. As a teenager, Sing approached members of the Hart wrestling family and asked to be trained, but she was rejected as they did not train women wrestlers at the time. Bret Hart, however, claims it had more to do with scheduling conflicts. During a trip to Hawaii in 1978, she saw Japanese women's wrestling on television and decided she wanted to pursue the sport. She later wrote to Mildred Burke, after a friend gave her a magazine with Burke's contact information, and sent her a biography and photo. Shortly thereafter, she joined Burke's training facility in Encino, California.

Japan, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico (1979–1995)
After a few weeks of training with Burke, Sing was scouted by All Japan Women (AJW), despite her inexperience. Sing's debut match in Japan was a tag team match with partner Mami Kumano, defeating the Beauty Pair (Jackie Sato and Maki Ueda) in January 1979. In Japan, she began wrestling under the name Monster Ripper. Although she found adjusting to the Japanese culture difficult, Sing held AJW's premier title, the WWWA World Single Championship, on two occasions and was the first Calgary born wrestler to gain success in Japan. During her time in the company, the Japanese female wrestlers gave her a hard time because they did not like losing to foreigners. Sing also had difficulty because of her youth and inexperience in the ring. Sing, however, was comforted by New Japan Pro-Wrestling's Dynamite Kid, who had also trained in Calgary. Sing won the WWWA World Single Championship from Jackie Sato on July 31, 1979. Despite losing the title to Sato six weeks later, she regained it on March 15, 1980. The title was vacated in August 1980.

After another stint in Japan, Sing returned to Stampede Wrestling in late 1987 and was renamed Rhonda Singh by Bruce Hart, the owner of the company. There were plans to pair her with Gama Singh, but they never came to fruition. During 1987, she was named their first Women's Champion because she had defeated Wendi Richter prior to returning to Stampede. She held the title until September 22, 1988, when she lost to Chigusa Nagayo.

Over the next few years, Sing once again traveled throughout the world and wrestled for a number of companies, holding several titles. Between 1987 and 1990, Sing worked in Puerto Rico for the World Wrestling Council (WWC), where she held the WWC Women's Championship on five separate occasions by defeating Wendi Richter, Candi Devine, and Sasha in matches for the title. As Monster Ripper on the WWC 18th Anniversary Show on July 6, 1991, she faced and beat El Profe in a intergender match.

In 1992 she worked as La Monstra for Asistencia Asesoría y Administración in Mexico where she won the WWA World Women's Title.

World Wrestling Federation (1995)

In 1995, Sing was contacted by the World Wrestling Federation to help their ailing women's division. She, however, was repackaged as Bertha Faye, a comedic character who lived in a trailer park and dated Harvey Wippleman. (in an OWW radio interview Wippleman revealed that the two never got along well) WWF management originally wanted her to have an on-screen feud with Bull Nakano, but there was a change of plans after Nakano was charged with cocaine possession.

Sing made her WWF debut on the April 3, 1995 episode of Monday Night Raw participating in a sneak attack on Alundra Blayze, making it appear as if Blayze's nose had been broken. At SummerSlam, Faye defeated Blayze for the WWF Women's Championship and held the title until the October 23, 1995 airing of Monday Night Raw, where Blayze regained the title, ending Faye's reign at only 57 days.

Fan interest in women's wrestling sunk once again as the year closed, and Sing tired of working there. Moreover, Faye was frustrated with her gimmick, as she once recalled she felt like a prostitute due to the sexualized and comical way that she was often portrayed. WWF management asked her not to perform the same power moves as the male wrestlers, so instead, Faye was forced to act as comic relief. After a year with the company, Sing asked for a release from her contract. She briefly returned to Japan, but did not like the new system, which did not guarantee payouts.

Return to Mexico and Canada (1995–1999)
After leaving WWF, Sing returned to AAA in Mexico in 1996. During this period, she worked in the independent circuit in Alberta.

World Championship Wrestling (1999–2000)
In late 1999, she worked with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) briefly, appearing on several telecasts to help generate interest in a women's division. She was also a contender for both the WCW Cruiserweight Championship and WCW Hardcore Championship. In addition to competing in matches using her Singh and Monster Ripper gimmicks, she also made an appearance with the Nitro Girls dance troupe for comic relief.

Personal life
Backstage, Sing was friends with the male, rather than the female, wrestlers. During her time in the WWF, she developed a close friendship with Owen Hart.

After leaving WCW, Sing took a break from wrestling. In 2001, she worked as a caregiver to the disabled. According to her brother Tom, she had a “big heart” and “liked to look after people”. On July 27, 2001, Sing died from a heart attack at the age of 40. Sing's family attributed to her death as a result of medical problems. Bruno Lauer disputes her cause of death in an interview with Online World of Wrestling Radio where he states that, "she took herself out."  She never married or had children.

Championships and accomplishments
All Japan Women's Pro-Wrestling
IWA World Women's Championship (1 time)
WWWA World Single Championship (2 times)
Cauliflower Alley Club
Posthumous Award (2003)
Stampede Wrestling
Stampede Women's Championship (1 time)
World Wrestling Association
WWA Women's Championship (1 time)
World Wrestling Council
WWC Women's Championship (8 times)
AWA World Women's Championship (1 time; unofficial) 
World Wrestling Federation
WWF Women's Championship (1 time)

See also
 List of premature professional wrestling deaths

References

External links 

 
 
 

1961 births
2001 deaths
AWA World Women's Champions
Canadian female professional wrestlers
Professional wrestlers from Alberta
Sportspeople from Calgary
Stampede Wrestling alumni
WWF/WWE Women's Champions
Expatriate professional wrestlers in Japan
20th century professional wrestlers